New MOMA Chief Photography Curator Quentin Bajac Wants to Diversify Its Collection


Since 1940 the Museum of Modern Art’s photography curators have been pivotal in establishing the course of photography history and the major players within it. So I was excited to read about the institution’s newest curator, a Frenchman with a progressive plan for it’s photography collection.

A May 30th Wall Street Journal article on MOMA’s new Chief Curator of Photography Quentin Bajac shared his desire for the department/collection to “be more global” giving more attention to Japanese, Latin American and African photographers. Bajac’s comments prove how narrowly focused the museum’s photography collecting strategy has historically been and I’m hoping that his diversifying philosophy will rub off on his colleagues at major art institutions worldwide.

Bajac had lots more to say about his plans for MOMA’s photography collection, adding that the museum will “not only be collecting prints but also media installations, files, images made especially for a website.” Redefining the medium, Bajac said that “there’s no such thing as photography,” describing it as a “series of technological processes. It is always changing, always young.” He also touted the book form and self-publishing trend amongst young photographers and plans to add moving images to the museum’s annual “New Photography” exhibit.

What do you think of Bajac’s plan and view on the future of photography?

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